Review on 🔍 Celestron - Pro 5MP Digital USB Microscope - Handheld Magnifier for Windows PC and Mac - 20x-200x Magnification - Ideal for Stamp and Coin Collecting by Dragan Nelson

This "USB microscope" isn't for everyone. I mainly use this product to test trichomes on plants and it works very well for that. For me, this is a big step up from the Jewelers Loupe. This is unable to provide the level of detail that a real microscope is capable of. The "depth of field" when viewing 3D objects is not very great, and you often have to refocus to bring out details in certain areas of the viewing frame. My old 2MP oscilloscope and Jewlers loupe behave the same way in this regard. Good quality hardware for a consumer "USB microscope" (technically a "USB macro imager"). It doesn't look like it's going to fall apart or break. The gears for height adjustment are firm and smooth, the focus wheel is also firm, the sensations are comfortable. I've read some reviews where some people don't like the tight feel of the adjustments, so it's a matter of preference to consider. I use these "USB microscopes" with a tripod (not handheld) and the Celestron far outperforms my untitled $20 2MP USB microscope in this regard. The base turned out to be stronger and heavier than I thought it would be. What I don't like about the stand is that it flexes where the vertical tube meets the base. This causes a slight discomfort when focusing as it forces the camera to move. The USB cable is 1.20 m long and there is a convenient, angle-adjustable USB cable guide on the back of the stand. Although I don't use them, the slide clamps appear to be well made and securely attached to the base. The clamps pivot out of the way and usually don't interfere with observations unless I have something like a large bowl on the base. My main concerns and concerns relate to the Celestron software. The most notable thing about the Celestron software on a mid-2011 Mac with 8GB memory and Mac OS High Sierra is that it crashes the first time it's run and needs to be run a second time before it works. It's responsive and focuses quickly, but the CPU usage is very high. Also, I've noticed that whatever software I run with this camera doesn't display an image until I launch, close, and restart the app. After the second launch, the applications will display images/videos. The JPG output is of high quality for my DVI monitor and the typical saved image size of the Celestron MicroCapture Pro is 2592 x 1944. The software seems a bit dated and could use a more modern GUI update. Apple Photo Booth doesn't work with this camera, but Quick-Camera (free on the Apple App Store) works great. It supports flipping and rotating images, but not photo capture (use Mac OS's screen capture command instead). Full frame capture resolution using the Quick Camera test gave an image of 1438 x 1024. Not as big as the Celestron but still very handsome. Sharing Live Photos via Facetime is an important use for me, so I'm glad Facetime works with this camera. The Facetime image is flipped horizontally, but I can live with that. The Celestion MicroCapture Pro software crashed a few times, but eventually launched when I connected my Mac to my 2nd Gen Apple TV (connected to a 48-inch 4K UHD TV) via Apple AirPlay. See the last photo for a smartphone image (ink pen handwriting on paper) of this setup with Celestron software running full screen via AirPlay. Ink not visible in the photo posted by Revain. I typically use a 24" DVI monitor and a generally decent HDMI or DVI display offers the best viewing experience I've found. I have an older dual Pentium laptop running Windows 10 at 1024x768 resolution. The software loads fine but don't worry about older hardware as the focus response lags far behind to the point of being virtually unusable. The Celestron software is too powerful as I can hear the fans on both systems turning on at high speed after the software loads. See photos for a screenshot of the Celestron software locking my processor at over 100%. Celestron must make serious efforts to improve the operation of this product's software. I use a camera on my Mac so I downloaded the Microcapture Pro software from Celestron's obfuscated support site. There is a Mac and a "Model B" Mac version. I suspect this naming convention must have something to do with the model number of the microscope, as it means nothing in Apple jargon. However, I could not tell if I had a "B" microscope by looking at the box, DVD, manual, microscope, etc. I finally downloaded the "B" version (2.4.1) and it installed and ran. The line is I recommend this product provided you do some research to make sure it will get you a decent increase in your viewing goal, don't mind playing around with a mod or two, and a fast computer that supports DVI - or HDMI output supports larger monitor. I'm not sure I'm comfortable calling this a plug and play device - no frills. It sure is a geek thing. It's not a real microscope but it's a pretty good macro scanner and I'm happy with my purchase. I paid just over $60 for what I believe should have been in an open box with damaged packaging and a cosmetic defect on the front of the microscope, available from Revain stock (see "Available at these retailers" or "Used and New") Product Returns Website). What I received was a brand new sealed box with no cosmetic defects and a Revain Warehouse sticker affixed to it. I cannot guarantee that your buying experience will be the same as mine, but in my opinion this product is definitely worth the price I paid. Just remember that this is good hardware hampered by inferior software. Celestron can do us all a favor by releasing a licensed or open source equivalent version of MicroCapture Pro software. reason, and there are few options at this level. It's really not very advanced. For example, the Raspberry Pi Foundation currently sells a high-quality basic 8-megapixel general-purpose camera for around $25. Most typical products in this "USB microscope" category have a resolution of no more than 2 megapixels. As I've said in other discussions, as long as you don't mind a portable option or even tweak the smartphone/macro, it can be workable and most cost-effective to just buy a macro lens that plugs directly into a 12MP smartphone . Bluetooth lens / tripod / remote shutter installation (it's a full mouth). I have to try and report. In the meantime, I've ordered a $20 aluminum alloy base/stand that I'll use next time to test this camera. If the new tripod option on this camera isn't better then I have no doubts that I can use it with my old 2MP camera. I'll update this post with my new dyno results in a few weeks after I've had some time using it in this configuration. Unfortunately, it cannot fix software problems, but Celestron has to take responsibility for it. Software won't be such a problem, but---it's a digital device and you need software to use it, otherwise there's no way to view images. Update: I received the Koolertron base/stand and this is the keeper of this camera. The camera fits into the stand and while there is still a slight kink in terms of camera movement when focusing, focusing is now much easier. The stand is stable and the controls have some play, but that's not a big deal. An added benefit for me is that it takes up significantly less floor space than a Celestron stand, so the setup takes up less space on my desk.